The present invention therefore has as its objective to overcome one or more of the drawbacks of previous designs by creating a machine that can be used to apply, without contact, onto a portion of a substrate, products or inks of average fluidity, such as varnish, glue, conducting or scratchable ink, onto a substrate of variable thickness and dimensions.
This objective is attained using a numerical jet machine for a viscous material, for the application of a coating onto a plastic face of a substrate, including an input magazine and an output magazine, a computer device to manage the operations on each of the work stations, a device for moving the substrate between the different work stations, a device for grasping and transferring the substrate from the input magazine to the movement device and from the movement device to the output magazine, wherein it includes at least:                a read station which reads and determines at least one position of the substrate and/or of markers placed on the substrate,        an application station composed of at least a series of nozzles arranged in a ramp, each nozzle being piloted separately by a command device, and fed from a reservoir containing product with medium or high viscosity to be projected onto the substrate during a relative movement between the substrate and the application station, to effect the application of the product in a given zone of the substrate, with the nozzles being hollow needles each made to vibrate by a piezoelectric actuator affixed to a resonator formed by the assembly of the hollow needle, with the excitation of the actuator in duration and power determining the dimensions and the shape of the drop of material of medium or high viscosity,        a drying station with an infra-red or heated air current or UV drying oven,        
with the control of the command device of the application station according to the position of the substrate, to the read station and to the drying station, and/or with the management of the information received at the different work stations to coordinate the operations, being effected by the management computer device in accordance with an established programming file.
According to another particular feature, the zone of application is specified for each substrate by a configuration file concerning the shape of the zone, its position on the substrate in relation to the substrate markers, the quantity of product to be projected, a machine control program making use of this information in order to translate it into parameters of relative movement of the substrate and of the nozzles, for selective control of the nozzles and of reiteration of offset passage of the substrate in front of the nozzles to produce joined-up lines if necessary.
According to another particular feature, the ramp in which the nozzles are arranged is equipped with a movement device in relation to the medium.
According to another particular feature, the projection site on the substrate is specified by the relative movement of the substrate in relation to the ramp in which the nozzles are arranged.
According to another particular feature, the product is glue and the drying is by heated air current.
According to another particular feature, the product is an aqueous varnish and the drying is by infra-red.
According to another particular feature, the product is a scratchable opaque ink and the drying is by heated air current.
According to another particular feature, the machine includes a device for pressurizing the product to be projected.
Another objective is to propose the use of this machine in a system for the preparation of identification documents (identity card, passport, driving license, etc.) or security documents (access badge, payment card, access key, etc.).
This objective is attained by the combination of a machine according to the invention, used upstream or downstream of an independent printing station or of a station for the installation of an electronic chip on the substrate.
According to another particular feature, the machine according to the invention is used upstream of the printing station for the application of glue in a zone other than that receiving the printing and a second machine is used downstream of the printing station for the application of a varnish on the printed part.
According to a variant, the machine is used upstream of the printing station for the application of varnish in a zone other than the zone receiving the printing and a second machine is used downstream of the printing station for the application of glue in a third zone.
According to a variant, the machine is used upstream of the station for the installation of an electronic chip on the substrate for the application of glue in the zone intended to receive the chip.